Reviews
of "The
Adventures of The King"
Order
today!
Back
to home page
|
Read a review from BabyBlaue-Seiten, a Prog Reviews site (Germany) Smack!
This one really hit me! Well performed, complex symphonic rock with
influences from the entire history of progressive and symphonic
rock. Hints of Magellan, Zappa, Echolyn, E.L.P, Beatles, Glass Hammer
and Van der Graaf Generator is in a unique, and rather heavy, way
mixed together into a style of their very own. This is a work I
think these guys must be very proud of. Definitely one of the strongest
and most interesting releases of 2001. Excellent!
"I read a review of Phoenix Eye (on their web site) which called them "neo-prog". This made me mad enough to almost go off on another of my tirades against the term "neo-prog", but I've decided to spare you that for this review. Let's just say that, according to any definition I've ever heard of "neo-prog" (other than "a band that put out prog music after 1982"), this band is not that. Phoenix Eye would be much better described as a '70's style power keyboard band, though this one also has an excellent guitarist. Phoenix Eye is just two Canadian guys, Julien Valiquette (keyboards/vocals) and Mic Myette (guitars), and on this album they're augmented by two excellent guest musicians, Martin Maheu (although the credits omit the final "x", this is drummer Martin Maheux from Spaced Out) credited with "some" drums and Denis Labrosse on fretless bass. These guys have created a stunning concept album of high-energy prog entitled The Adventures of the King. The "concept" here is relatively loose, ostensibly being about a king who's persecuting an artist who painted his portrait with "hands that aren't so clean". However, there's not much of a plot here ... it's not a "storytelling" kind of concept album ... but the lyrics are all about the abuse of power by politicians and the effect this has on people. Musically, it's fairly obvious that Julien Valiquette is a fan of Keith Emerson (need I say "of ELP and The Nice"?), and his mix of ELP keyboard bombast, jazzy fusion stylings and also some Canterburian leanings are reminiscent of his countryman Guy LeBlanc (Nathan Mahl). The guitar stylings also borrow from a number of sources, most notably Allan Holdsworth and Frank Zappa, plus the usual assortment of power chords and hard rock riffs. Both players are excellent, smooth and energetic. Every cut on this album has its charms, but my favorites are the Zappa-like "Just the Same", "Contrasts II" (containing "forbidden harmonies") and the finale, "Land of Reality" with a very Zappaish spoken section, like on Apostrophe. The ELP-derived cuts are also among my favorites, including "A Thousand Years" (reminiscent of "Bitch's Crystal"), "Promises" (which has Hammond in the vein of "Living Sin") and finally "Contrasts II" which doesn't sound like any particular ELP tune but just has that sound. There's also a great fusion piece, "Contrasts" that shows off guest Denis Labrosse's talents on fretless bass with a cut that could be off a Bruford album except for the organ parts. All in all, a spectacular debut album. If I had to say something negative, if I had my way in producing it, I would have made "The Other Side" more spacey and had a guest (female?) vocalist sing this one. This is the only song where Valiquette's voice seems too harsh for the composition. Still, this is a minor quibble for a totally fantastic album. Highly recommended! And definitely not just for fans of Pendragon! " Review
by Fred Trafton, Gibraltar
Encyclopedia of Progressive Rock (U.S.A.) "This band from Montreal, composed of Julien Valiquette and Mic Myette, offer their first opus. Aside from the usual instruments and MIDI programming there's a bit of flute. The signing is in english. The base of their music is rock but I perceive some jazz influences. Actually, they remind me sometimes of Deus ex machina but a bit more melodic. Add a touch of symphonism here and there. As a whole, I would say they succeeded well in the fusion of their influences. The simple motifs are well surrounded with complex and often tasteful passages, built with a beautiful reserve. The CD has great variety of themes, interesting developments, rhythm changes and very little repetition. That beautiful diversity and the complexity both controlled and accessible makes it so I never get tired of listening to these compositions. It is a record that I like a lot and I don't hesitate to recommend." Review
by Eric Legault, Cité prog (Canada)
Review
by Larry Kolota, Kinesis
cd (U.S.A.)
|
Contact us
| Website designed by 4DFusion Inc. |  |